The Politics Forum Latest Topicshttps://forums.footballguys.com/forum/forum/49-the-politics-forum/The Politics Forum Latest TopicsenAlexandria Ocasio-Cortez Threadhttps://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/768581-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-thread/
Shapiro has offered her $10,000 to her campaign or the charity of her choice to come on to his show for an hour to discuss political topics. My guess is that she refuses, but in the event she accepts, not only would he wipe the floor with her but it would be very entertaining.

Video of her grilling Stumpf, the CEO of Wells Fargo, is just awesome! Would hate to get on her bad side. But she is so right on the money with this guy. Simply criminal what he and other senior executives at WF have done.

]]>780173Sat, 14 Sep 2019 10:39:53 +0000Game theory and War, knowing your game, infinite versus finite gameshttps://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/780199-game-theory-and-war-knowing-your-game-infinite-versus-finite-games/
Thought provoking TED talk by Simon Sinek on the games we have played and that we play

To give a talk last fall, as The New York Times reported Wednesday, in which he praised a Michigan Republican congressman who was locked in a close re-election fight, and for which he pocketed a $150,000 lecture fee from a business-oriented civic group that was known to be strongly Republican-leaning…

I mean, I really would love to know the thought process that led him to the conclusion that making that speech was a fine idea. He goes back to a time when doing a good-natured bipartisan favor for a friend from the other party wasn’t a crazy thing to do. You can lament if you want—and a part of me does—the fact that those days are gone and that you just don’t do that sort of thing in this polarized time of Trump. But gone they are. It is a crazy thing to do.

Biden can’t not know that. He spent eight years in Barack Obama’s White House, for gosh sakes. He knows what’s happened to this country, what the Republican Party has become. He watched them fight the Affordable Care Act tooth and nail. When it passed despite all that, he famously declared it a “big ####### deal,” loud enough so the microphones could pick it up.

Then he watched the Republicans vote to repeal it 60-whatever times. Those didn’t really count since Obama was still president, but then he watched them repeal it in the House again, once Obama was gone. And Biden knows very well that Fred Upton, the GOP congressman he praised in his speech, calling him “one of the finest guys I’ve ever worked with,” voted for the repeal.

That’s important. Fully 20 Republicans did not vote for Paul Ryan’s repeal bill in May 2017. Upton, who is sometimes called a moderate and who had waffled before the vote, could have been one of those Republican dissent-niks. If he had, Biden’s appearance before the group—it has longstanding ties to Upton’s wealthy family, and the speech was in Upton’s 6th Congressional District—might have been sort of understandable.

Actually, even then, no. Upton was in a close race. His Democratic challenger had a shot. Upton ultimately won by 4.5 percent in a district Donald Trump carried by nearly twice that margin. Biden probably didn’t make the difference. But for a former two-term vice president, one of the biggest names in the party, to come into the district on Oct. 16 and lavish praise on the Republican was quite a blow to the loyal precinct Democrats out knocking on doors and working phone banks for candidate Matt Longjohn.

Biden is in a strange position. He’s leading all the polls, but that’s mainly because of name recognition. People seem split on whether he’s actually going to run, as he has twice before, though I think he will. People (and by “people” I mean “liberal-left insider-junkie types”) are not split, however, on whether he can win the nomination. Everybody thinks he has no chance.

His problem is precisely that he dates to that chummy era, which was also an era when the Democratic Party was a very different animal. Actually, he goes back at least two animals ago. He was elected to the Senate in 1972! When George McGovern was the nominee. The Biden of 1972 ran on some positions that have circled back into fashion.

But then he grew in seniority and stature during the years when the Democrats were charging to the center on issues like crime. Some of his old criminal-justice remarks are going to dog him, as will his chummy decision during the Clarence Thomas hearings to not call as witnesses women who could have corroborated Anita Hill’s testimony. This past, say the aforementioned people, will doom him.

But those people don’t know everything. The weird thing about Biden is that despite all these things, he could beat Trump. He could probably have beaten him last time, easily, and, provided he could somehow wrangle the nomination, this next time too. He’d have plenty of appeal to non-Democrats and soft Democrats. He’d win Pennsylvania without much trouble, and probably Michigan and Wisconsin, and maybe Ohio and Iowa.

His problem is that his appeal to the groups that make up the base of the party is close to zero. This is the Democratic conundrum Biden represents. One the one hand, Democratic voters want someone electable, mostly likely to beat Trump. On the other, they want someone who articulates this new bolder energy. Biden is very much the former but is totally not the latter.

I wouldn’t quite count him out. A lot of voters do seem to like him, and this speech, by itself, is a survivable error. But it’s survivable by a good candidate who spends the fall of the midterm elections making a dramatic move or two demonstrating that he knows he needs to freshen up his image. Instead he went off and cashed a $150,000 check (the other $50,000 was travel expenses) from a Republican-leaning business group.

And given his history, you just know he’ll do something like this again. He always has. Maybe that’s why he’s 0-for-2.

Worthy of its own thread. We’ve been so bent to absurd new standards, or lack thereof, but there is clear protocol for how such a complaint is to be released to Congress. Statue is clear, and this should have happened two weeks ago! Acting DNI head has no discretion to challenge or seek guidance from DOJ for independent Inspector General report, but did in violation of law.

Lack of adherence to law is particularly egregious as it likely involves the President and/or top officials and there is no good excuse for burying.

Could have national security implications. Needs attention and public awareness and action.

]]>780181Sat, 14 Sep 2019 14:23:15 +00001619 Podcast - Ep4. Universal Health Care (everyone should listen to it)https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/780204-1619-podcast-ep4-universal-health-care-everyone-should-listen-to-it/
The podcast has been awesome to listen to. I'd suggest every American voter listen to the first 4 to give the podcast a try.

Ep1 = Fighting for Democracy

Ep2 = Economics of Slavery... it's pretty sad that things implemented during these times are still be used today.

Ep3 = Music... an awesome look at how African Americans created America music and Pop Culture

]]>780204Sat, 14 Sep 2019 23:33:33 +0000The Russia Investigation: Mueller - "Over the course of my career, I've seen a number of challenges to our democracy.The Russian govt's effort to interfere in our election is among the most serious."https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/753528-the-russia-investigation-mueller-over-the-course-of-my-career-ive-seen-a-number-of-challenges-to-our-democracythe-russian-govts-effort-to-interfere-in-our-election-is-among-the-most-serious/
Well I hope this doesn't get me banned, but its an important story that should be discussed.

I had figured that we had another 50-70 years to figure this out. Apparently not.

]]>771204Mon, 08 Oct 2018 04:43:20 +0000USA Shootingshttps://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/764628-usa-shootings/
I thought maybe it was a good idea to catalog school shootings. I'm going to include any that happen on school grounds and/or appear to be aimed at students in some way. We've got to have cutoffs or we'll stress the tubes.

January 4 - No casualties when someone shot one round into a high school in Seattle!

January 6 - A school bus window is shot out, and the pellet lands in a girl's head in Iowa! Picture of the shooter shows a hard working "good people on both sides" American!

January 10 - Someone alters the appearance of the Visual Arts Building by shooting at it from the nearby foothills at Cal State Fullerton! Totally coincidentally, 200 students were in the lecture hall for their Race and Racism class. Go Coyotes!

January 10 - A 14 year old kills himself in an elementary school in Arizona!

January 15 - No casualties result from a good old fashioned gunfight outside a dorm at Wiley College, Texas! Stray bullets entered occupied dorm rooms, too. Yeah Wildcats!

January 20 - It's a classic public vs. private matchup as a Winston Salem State University student is shot and killed at Wake Forest University! Here we go Deacs!

January 22 - 1 injured as a 15 year old boy shoots a 14 year old girl in Texas! "She said she was angry when she learned who the suspect was because she had complained about him at least twice to school officials, including to a vice principal. 'This could have been avoidable,' she said. 'There were so many signs.'" Just kids being kids, I say

January 22 - 1 injured when a driveby shooter shoots into a group of kids standing in front of their high school school in New Orleans!

January 23 - 2 killed and at least 18 injured at a high school in Kentucky!

January 25 - A high school student points a loaded gun at administrators and students before firing into the air in Mobile, Alabama!

January 26 - Shots fired after a fracas at a basketball game in Dearborn, Michigan! Seems like it may have been neighborhood spat unrelated to the school

February 1 - A twelve year old accidentally shoots four other kids (one in the head) in a Los Angeles middle school

February 5 - 11th grader shot in the chest in an apparent robbery in Maryland!

February 5 - Third grader pulls the trigger and shoots an officer's gun in Minnesota! Thank god for armed good guys!

February 8 - Only a wall injured as shot fired in high school in the Bronx, NY

February 28 - In the wake of the Florida shooting we finally figured out we need to arm the teachers. Wait? What's that? Teacher arrested in Georgia after firing shots and barracading himself into a high school classroom

March 13 - Good guy with gun accidentally fires a shot in an Alexandria, VA middle school. Oopsie doopsie.

March 13 - Another good guy with a gun accidentally fires a shot during a public safety class in a Seaside, California high school. Don't worry, a student was only hit by "fragments" of a bullet, not the whole thing.

March 20 - Shooter dead, 2 other students injured at a Great Mills, Maryland high school. GGwG may have killed shooter, or he may have suicided

April 9 - High schooler chases down and shoots another high schooler with a bb gun at a Gloversville, NY middle school

April 12 - Man shot in the stomach at a middle school track meet in Raytown, Missouri

April 20 - 19 year old former student shoots a 17 year old current student in the ankle in Ocala, Florida

May 16 - Graduation is a stressful time. 19 year old senior opens fire at gymnasium during graduation walkthrough in Dixon, Illinois! Officer is able to shoot and capture shooter and no one else is shot or injured

May 17 - Not technically a school shooting as a high school senior is shot at a graduation ceremony at a church rented out for the Leawood, Kansas Center High School school graduation

May 18 - 17 year old kills 8 students and 2 teachers at Santa Fe High School, Santa Fe, Texas

May 18 - One dead, one injured in a parking lot shooting after the Mr. Zion high school graduation in Jonesboro, Georgia! May 25 - Middle schooler shoots a classmate and a teacher in Noblesville, Indiana! The deceased was a woman in her 40's though. I don't even know if that counts anymore

May 21 - Woman accidentally shot in an elementary school parking lot in Griffin, GA! “The main thing in this – whatever happened – is that it wasn’t directed at students or staff. They were inside doing an awards ceremony,” Dix said. “It was not related to school activities or any functions of the school itself.”

June 1 - Student commits suicide by gun at McKinney North High School in McKinney, TX

June 9 - Man killed in apparent road rage incident at Compton Community College when one man busts a cap in a student's ###. Life ain't Eazy.

June 21 - 16 year old shot in ankle at Skyline High School in "Pleasant" Grove, TX! This one was hard to google because in recent years there have also been shootings or shooting threats at Skyline High School in Washington State, and Arizona

June 24 - Two boys shot by a third outside basketball practice at Sentinal High in Missoula, MT!

I apologize for putting this in the Politics Subforum, because obviously these things have nothing to do with policy or politics. Unfortunately I couldn't find the "We don't care that our kids kill each other" subforum.

*** On 3/20, 2+ months, and 84 pages after the original post, the mods decided to change the name of the thread. IIRC, the name was something like “Yay school shootings! USA, USA!” I can’t imagine why they changed it, particularly since their new chosen title ignores the fact that the whole thread is about school shootings. But apparently some members or mods can’t face the reality that school shootings are endemic to our American culture, and would prefer to ignore it.

]]>764628Wed, 24 Jan 2018 14:52:11 +0000The Jimmy Dore Showhttps://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/754615-the-jimmy-dore-show/
I've been enjoying the heck out of this guy's broadcasts. He aligns with progressive values but doesn't care about political party whatsoever. I don't agree with his ideas about a $15 minimum wage, or single payer healthcare for example but he's on the level about political/media corruption.

He's at his best when he's trashing corporate media for not covering things because their owners don't want them to. Most of his broadcasts are from a studio with a couple on-air guests but he occasionally does broadcasts in front of a live audience in a comedy show setting.

]]>780018Tue, 10 Sep 2019 14:37:57 +0000The Trump Years- Every day something more shocking than the last!https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/753767-the-trump-years-every-day-something-more-shocking-than-the-last/
Day 1-Press conference making sure that you all know that the small inauguration photos were a result of the media
"framing" in order to make the crowd look small. In fact, this was the largest inauguration turnout ever. No questions,
just believe me. Thanks. We move on.

Day 2-KAC goes on Meet the Press and refuses to answer Chuck Todd's question about why the lies in the press
conference, explaining them away as simply "alternate facts" and threatens that they may have to re-evaluate their
relationship with Todd/NBC.

Day 3-Spicer has temper tantrum and begs press only to report positive things about Trump administration.

Day 3 UPDATE!!! -Trump lets us all know that he only lost the popular election because 3-5 million people illegally voted for Hillary! He's winning BIGLY!

Day 4-Trump orders scientists at the EPA and Dept. of Ag to no longer communicate with the public. Mum's the word!

]]>753767Sat, 21 Jan 2017 23:12:36 +0000Trump and the FBIhttps://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/763988-trump-and-the-fbi/
But I thought Trump told us that the FBI is in tatters?

Officials have stopped a man who reportedly stated that "Christmas was the perfect day" for a terror attack in San Francisco and "did not need an escape plan because he was ready to die."

We've learned the FBI has arrested a man by the name of Everitt Aaron Jameson from Modesto. They say he wanted to target Pier 39.

According to FBI documents, Jameson picked out that location because he "had been there before and knew it was a heavily crowded area." He added that it would be easy to "funnel" people into an area where he could inflict casualties.

The documents also say Jameson was posting and liking pro-ISIS and pro-terrorism content on Facebook.

And according to the documents, the suspect was discharged from the Marine Corps. He had prior military experience with a "sharpshooter" rifle qualification and expertise with rifle marksmanship.

Officials say Jameson was talking to an undercover FBI agent. They add that he was arrested earlier this week and a search warrant was executed at his Modesto home. Several firearms were found, along with fireworks.

ABC7 News contacted officials at Pier 39 to ask for a response, they say they did not know about this plot.

]]>763988Fri, 22 Dec 2017 20:36:47 +0000Fox news cracks me up...Benghazi! Hillary! Comey! AOC!https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/760232-fox-news-cracks-me-upbenghazi-hillary-comey-aoc/
They seem so lost right now. They literally don't know what else to splash on the front page.
]]>760232Wed, 13 Sep 2017 13:37:17 +0000Donald Trump Tweets Threadhttps://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/764393-donald-trump-tweets-thread/
It appears the old thread was deleted by the OP for whatever reason.

Post your Trump tweets or any related tweets and any related discussion.

Hey kids, no restrictions on what you can post here as long as it arguably bears some relation to the thread topic.

]]>764393Tue, 09 Jan 2018 18:53:27 +0000TRUMP 2020 HQ - The Great Placehttps://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/776645-trump-2020-hq-the-great-place/
Today is the big day where our President announces his re-election bid. I figured a thread was needed to discuss the upcoming election strategy and his successful first term.

]]>776645Tue, 18 Jun 2019 20:15:31 +0000Democratic Debateshttps://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/776590-democratic-debates/
Thought this would be thread worthy - they’ve now announced the lineups.

The President shall, at stated times, receive for his services, a compensation, which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not receive within that period any other emolument from the United States, or any of them.

Art. I, Sec. 9, USC:

Quote

No title of nobility shall be granted by the United States: and no person holding any office of profit or trust under them, shall, without the consent of the Congress, accept of any present, emolument, office, or title, of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign state.

I don't start threads too often, but when I do it's because I'm interested in the subject but I don't see a thread and I just want to see what happens with it and if people have news and thoughts on it.

Robert W Archbald was the third person to be removed from federal office. The federal judge was impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives on July 11, 1912, for engaging in improper business relationship with litigants that appeared in his court. He was subsequently convicted by the U.S. Senate and removed from office.

...

The House committee summarized the charges in its report as follows:

He has prostituted his high office for personal profit. He has attempted by various transactions to commercialize his potentiality as judge. He has shown an overweening desire to make gainful bargains with parties having cases before him or likely to have cases before him. To accomplish his purpose he has not hesitated to use his official power and influence. He has degraded his high office and destroyed the confidence of the public In his judicial integrity. He has forfeited the condition upon which he holds his commission and should be removed from office by Impeachment.

The Senate found Archbald guilty of five of 13 articles of impeachment brought by the House and ordered that he be removed from office. Even after being impeached, Archbald maintained that he did nothing wrong. ...

So, on that point, apparently the Emoluments lawsuit against President Trump has indeed been creeping along:

A federal judge on Wednesday rejected President Trump’s latest effort to stop a lawsuit that alleges Trump is violating the Constitution by continuing to do business with foreign governments.

The ruling, from U.S. District Judge Peter J. Messitte in Greenbelt, Md., will allow the plaintiffs in the case — the attorneys general of Maryland and the District of Columbia — to proceed with their case, which says Trump has violated the Constitution’s little-used emoluments clause.

The plaintiffs now want to interview Trump Organization employees and search company records to determine which foreign countries have spent money at Trump’s hotel in downtown Washington.

The Justice Department and Trump’s attorneys did not immediately respond to requests for comment. They could try to appeal the decision to a higher court and ask Messitte not to allow the attorneys general access to Trump Organization employees and books until the appeal is decided.

The lawsuit, filed last year by D.C. Attorney General Karl A. Racine (D) and Maryland Attorney General Brian E. Frosh (D), cleared an initial hurdle in March. Back then, Messitte settled one legal question, ruling that the plaintiffs had legal standing to sue the president in the first place.

He also limited the scope of the case to Trump’s Washington hotel; previously, the plaintiffs had also wanted to search for foreign-government spending at other Trump properties as well.

The next unsettled questions: What, exactly is an emolument?

That was a question that remained unanswered for more than 200 years.

The Constitution bars federal officials from taking emoluments from any “King, Prince, or Foreign State.” The Founding Fathers’ intent had been to stop U.S. ambassadors overseas — emissaries from a new, poor, fragile country — from being bought off by jewels or payments from wealthy European states.

But the modern meaning of the clause had not been settled because most presidents — acting on the advice of their attorneys — had steered clear of business entanglements while in office.

Trump, on the other hand, has kept ownership of his business empire, including more than 10 hotels and golf clubs around the world. Although Trump has said he gave up day-to-day management of his businesses, he still owns them and can withdraw money from them at any time.

Some of his customers have been foreign governments. In particular, the Trump International Hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue in downtown Washington — just blocks from the White House — has rented out large ballrooms to the embassies of Kuwait and the Philippines and hosted visiting leaders from Malaysia and Romania.

At the hearing in June, the plaintiffs had argued that when applied in a modern context, the Constitution’s ban on emoluments should ban transactions such as those.

They said that emolument in this case should not just mean an outright gift but also any transaction that gave Trump “profit, gain or advantage.” That means it would apply to transactions in which a foreign government paid Trump’s company for a service or a hotel room.

But Justice Department attorneys, defending the president, said that this definition twisted the Constitution’s original meaning.

They said the president is not breaking the law when foreign officials book rooms or hold events at his Washington hotel because they are paying for something and not giving Trump a gift.

If the plaintiffs are allowed to conduct “discovery” at Trump’s hotel — examining its books to identify its foreign customers — that could require the president to provide more detailed information about his personal finances. Trump broke with presidential tradition when he refused to make public his tax returns.

The plaintiffs in this case said last month that, through the discovery process, they would try to gain access to Trump’s tax returns, which detail the functions of his businesses as well as his personal spending.

Before Trump took office, his company said it would donate all “foreign profits” collected by the business to the federal treasury. At the end of last year, the Trump Organization said it donated $151,470 in February. But it declined to explain the details behind that number — giving no information about which countries those profits came from or what the Trump Organization’s total revenue from foreign governments had been.

In a separate lawsuit, 200 Democrats in Congress asked a U.S. district judge to force Trump to seek congressional approval before accepting emoluments. The judge in that case has not ruled on the merits of the suit.

- I don't really expect much to come of this but I am excited it is moving this far. I'm a fan of arcane language in the US Constitution and I view much of it as being almost typically always being unenforceable in court cases because who really has standing for such things? And yet I view them as being ghosts in the machine left there by the Founders for when we need them. Hopefully this is such an instance and this continues to trundle through to success.

]]>768098Wed, 25 Jul 2018 16:39:07 +0000Wikileaks ⏳ | DOJ indicts Assange under Espionage Act; “For the first time in the history of our country, the government has brought criminal charges against a publisher for the publication of truthful information”https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/770802-wikileaks-%E2%8F%B3-doj-indicts-assange-under-espionage-act-%E2%80%9Cfor-the-first-time-in-the-history-of-our-country-the-government-has-brought-criminal-charges-against-a-publisher-for-the-publication-of-truthful-information%E2%80%9D/
May as well have an ***official*** thread.

]]>780107Thu, 12 Sep 2019 14:46:33 +0000Obamacare: Obama just straight up lied to you, in your facehttps://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/695973-obamacare-obama-just-straight-up-lied-to-you-in-your-face/Conservatives and Libertarians like to complain about the inefficiency and waste inherent in gov't. Libs tend to appreciate a larger gov't offering more services especially in social welfare programs.

for the most part, conservatives have lost the argument as more and more social programs have been added steadily over the course of the last 80 years, and the federal gov't has grown steadily as well.

Then came Obamacare. And it was an abject failure.

The gov't had 3 1/2 years to prepare the infrastructure for an Oct 1, 2013 rollout of the exchanges. In that time, the gov't wasted $630 million building a website that they didn't test and failed immediately under the weight of 50,000 users. In todays internet, 50,000 users is a niche blog.

The website is so bad they may have to rebuild it completely. There's talk of 5 million lines of code having to be rewritten.

The problem now isn't just the horrible website, its the fact that the young and healthy that this system needs to pay for the old and sick with preexisting conditions, aren't going to try 25 times to log in and register. The old and sick will, they desperately need insurance. But the very group that this entire ponzi scheme needs to sustain itself, won't mess around with a website and process they can't identify with in their daily lives. What that means is the entire scheme will collapse in on itself. All because our gov't couldn't figure out in 3 1./2 years how to develop a well tested and stable website platform for which joe avg could log on and sign up.

And if you're conservative or libertarian and hate Obamacare, this is the real life example that affirms your disdain for Big Government. If you're a liberal, it might make you reconsider your faith in it.

]]>695973Mon, 21 Oct 2013 14:45:46 +0000USA DUI Deaths (and how they relate to other things)https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/773660-usa-dui-deaths-and-how-they-relate-to-other-things/
Other posters don't want to discuss DUI deaths in the shooting thread (or any other thread for that matter). Therefore, I will use this thread to raise awareness about the loss of lives from alcohol related accidents. If you would like to make comparisons to guns, lawn darts, or anything else, feel free to do so. (I will be)

The New Year’s Eve holiday enforcement period was not the deadliest for California, though. The deadliest in 2018 was during the Thanksgiving holiday enforcement period, when 59 people died in DUI-involved crashes, according to CHP.

]]>773660Sat, 05 Jan 2019 14:11:21 +0000The way many corporations use Chapter 11 bankruptcy (reorganization) ought to be illegal.https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/780116-the-way-many-corporations-use-chapter-11-bankruptcy-reorganization-ought-to-be-illegal/
This morning I saw the headline on the news: “Forever 21 to declare bankruptcy.” Well not really, they are declaring Chapter 11 bankruptcy, meaning they will close down the stores that aren’t earning enough money, fire those employees, and screw over the landlords. Forever 21 has over 700 stores.

As far as I’m concerned, this is legal theft. Forever 21 has been notorious for negotiating back end leases (in which the landlord gives them all kinds of breaks and tenant improvements, free rent, etc, for the first few years in exchange for long terms) for excess square footage that they did not need, usually in large malls. They borrowed tons of money to expand as quickly as possible. Now they’re going to close down whatever stores they want, with virtually no penalty, and then likely sell the remaining stores to a larger corporation- the executives will walk away much wealthier than before. Our President is no doubt very familiar with this scam; he did it 3-4 times.

Our bankruptcy laws were established originally as a means for people who ran small businesses to avoid debtor’s prison. These days it’s become a way for large corporations to invest with little or no risk and collect the profits while others suffer. Particularly chapter 11.

End of rant.

]]>780116Thu, 12 Sep 2019 21:03:28 +0000The face of socialism and ignorancehttps://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/780152-the-face-of-socialism-and-ignorance/
Shutting down free speech is a communist ideal. Twitter and Facebook had to reinstate this millennial’s conservatives account. She made a great short video that maybe you saw on tv last night.

]]>780152Fri, 13 Sep 2019 18:39:05 +00002020: The Race For the White House - The Good Placehttps://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/772242-2020-the-race-for-the-white-house-the-good-place/
Ok. Mid-terms are over.

The Race for the White House is upon us. In about 15 months, the first primaries will take place. Over the next year, people will be jockeying for position - trying to figure out the right coalition of voters and messaging to win the Democratic Nomination - and if any brave Republican dare to challenge Trump.

Front-runners will come and go - the key is not to peak in 2019, but to build momentum into 2020. The Dems will have a power struggle - old guard, progressives, centrists, men, women, whites, minorities - all vying for the soul of the party and the right to challenge Trump* in the general election.

*There only two people who can knock Trump out of the Republican nomination, Trump himself, or Robert Mueller. No other candidate will pry the GOP from Trump's iron-clad grip.

So, let us see who emerges, and what issues rise up to the forefront over the next 12-15 months.

McKrae Game, the man who founded one of the biggest conversion therapy programs in the country, is opening up about his decision to come out as gay after leading the homophobic organization for 20 years.

Game, 51, appeared on Tuesday’s episode of Tamron Hall, the former NBC journalist’s new self-titled talk show, where Game spoke candidly about his decision to go public with his truth after vehemently preaching that being gay would send someone to hell.

“I snapped out of it,” Game told Hall, 48, during the show. “That’s the phrase I use.”

In 1999, Game started Truth Ministry, a faith-based conversion therapy program in South Carolina that aims to suppress or completely change a person’s LGBTQ+ sexuality through counseling, interventions, or ministry. The program was eventually rebranded and renamed as Hope for Wholeness in 2013. (Game said he was abruptly fired from the organization nearly two years ago over his usage of pornography, but in a statement to PEOPLE, the organization says the “board of HFW walked with McKrae for over a year concerning issues that led to his resignation.”)

“I’m trying to highlight the wrongs in so many of these organizations. I gave 28 years of my life of repressing my homosexuality, not understanding and not knowing really what it’s like to be able to just simply accept who I am,” Game told Hall on Tuesday.

Game described the harmful impact of living in denial.

“I’ve always said I have a chronic anxiety problem,” he said. “That’s gone. I realized I was causing my own mental illness, and that’s what I was doing to other people.”

Game described himself as a “practicing homosexual” from age 19 to 22. He told Hall that he went to an anti-gay conference that led him to conversion therapy. There, he said, he was not taught that he “would go from gay to straight,” but rather, “It was more of promising me that my attractions would lessen, that they would diminish.”

Game’s admission made headlines earlier this month when he went public with the news in an interview with the Post and Courier. He told the publication that he once believed the LGBTQ+ community was “lying” about sexuality.

Now, I think its the complete opposite. I believe ex-gay ministry is a lie; conversion therapy is not just a lie, it’s very harmful,” he told the publication. “[Especially] when it takes it to the point of, ‘You need to change and here’s a curriculum, here’s how you do it, and you haven’t changed yet, keep at it, it’ll happen.’ “

Nearly 700,000 LGBTQ+ adults in the country have received conversion therapy, and about 350,000 of those received the treatment as adolescents, according to a January 2018 report from UCLA’s Williams Institute. Such efforts to change a person’s gender identity or sexual orientation are associated with poor mental health, according to the Institute.

Studies have shown that conversion therapy only amplifies the stigma and shame the LGBTQ+ community experiences.

LGBTQ+ youth exposed to conversion efforts — whether from their families, therapists, or religious leaders — attempt suicide at more than double the rate of their peers, according to a study from the Family Acceptance Project.

Game, a married father of two, told Hall that he acknowledges the harm he has caused as the former leader of the organization and said he is meeting “with people who are angry,” including former clients.

“I want to point to people that have come out of these programs that are traumatized,” he said during the show.

He noted that he is dedicated to hearing people’s stories of their experiences in conversion therapy.

“That’s what it’s really about,” he said. “It’s not really about me.”

In its statement to PEOPLE, the organization said “HFWN and our affiliated ministries do not endorse or practice ‘conversion’ or ‘reparative’ therapies. Most ministry leaders are not licensed therapists. We disciple individuals who are conflicted about their sexuality in regards to their faith. We utilize faith-based groups and pastoral discipleship to address issues from the individuals’ past and help them reconcile their faith and sexuality. We never use coercion, shaming, nudity, touch therapies with any individual who might come to our affiliate ministries.”

]]>780085Wed, 11 Sep 2019 23:48:13 +0000The investigation investigations: IG Investigation Completehttps://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/776701-the-investigation-investigations-ig-investigation-complete/
Huber - investigating FBI surveillance of Page and Clinton/Uranium One since November '17. The FBI investigation has been taken over by Horowitz. Unknown how long the Clinton/Uranium One will drag out. This entire thing has been shrouded in secrecy, no one really knows what is going on.

Duration: 20 months
Cost: unknown
Results: unknown

Horowitz - More investigation into the Page surveillance and possible FISA abuse since March '18. Completed early July '19. Report in progress.

Duration: 15 months
Cost: unknown
Results: unknown

Durham - Broad investigation into the origins of the Russia investigation since May '19. Just getting started. Hold on to your hats.

Duration: 2 months
Cost: unknown
Results: unknown

]]>776701Thu, 20 Jun 2019 14:23:06 +0000Has Nadler lost it?https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/780113-has-nadler-lost-it/
I can't remember seeing a political figure so out of touch. If he proceeds with impeachment proceedings he is gifting 4 more years of Trump.

Will this huge misstep cost the Democrats? Polls show folks in the middle don't want impeachment and want to move past this Russia conspiracy nonsense.

It looks like Hillary is getting herself in position to become an elder statesman within the party. That's not the same as running for office but if she succeeds in her latest goals it's still a pretty influential position within the party and she hasn't been shy expressing her disdain for the Bernie branch of the party.

ETA I know there used to be a long Hillary thread but search just showed something from Dodds about her running for mayor.

]]>760191Tue, 12 Sep 2017 16:46:41 +00002020 Republican Primary: Will Trump be challenged?https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/767032-2020-republican-primary-will-trump-be-challenged/
I can't imagine there won't be challengers but will any get traction? In order for them to get traction they obviously need to be opposed to Trump and have shown where they differ.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich: Probably a very decent general election candidate and a very vocal opponent for Trump, but does he have support of enough conservatives?

Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake: If you want a very vocal opponent of trump this is your guy, but what else besides that does he offer?

Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse: Taking the fight to Trump online, but does he have enough name recogniztion?

New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez: Another person not know to many on the East Coast, but a huge digital thorn to trump.

Former Utah Gov. / Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney: He has recently seemed to embrace Trump, has his past fights with him enough to be anti-Trump? Do the Republicans have the stomach for Mitt 2020 or more binders full of women?

I am sure there are others, who are on your list?

Does any of this matter? Is it true that the republicans are now The Trump Party and they will run him in 2020?

Full disclosure the chance I vote against the Republicans is 100%, so I don't have my finger on the pulse of the Republicans. But I know more people who have moved away from Trump than have moved towards him. But I also knew more Hillary voters than Trump, so there's that...

]]>767032Thu, 07 Jun 2018 01:05:09 +0000***Marianne Williamson 2020 HQ***https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/776886-marianne-williamson-2020-hq/
Calling all FBGs who wish to join hands and reach into the psyche of America, raising us up from darkness and chaos into the celestial realm of love:

]]>776886Fri, 28 Jun 2019 04:29:36 +0000Andrew Yang 2020https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/775071-andrew-yang-2020/
I thought we had a thread, but nothing popped in the search results.

I'm really coming around on this guy to the point of excitement. I haven't been excited about a candidate since Obama in 2008.

I dont know if he is gaining traction or my youtube, yahoo, web address are just pointing me to more of his stuff.

The guy offers well thought out ideas for some of the bigger issues facing our country. I guess he did a sit down with Ben Shapiro recently and I'm looking forward to that listen.

I think everyone on both sides should at least explore the guy.

]]>775071Fri, 05 Apr 2019 05:02:58 +0000President Trump believes Putin over the US Intelligence Agencies. Do you agree with Trump?https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/775360-president-trump-believes-putin-over-the-us-intelligence-agencies-do-you-agree-with-trump/
None of the Trump supporters wanted to answer this question in the Russian thread so thought I would take another angle.

Colin Kaepernick

Colin Kaepernick was alone in his early protests last year when he boldly and courageously confronted perceived inequalities in our social-justice system by refusing to stand for the national anthem. At times in our nation's history, we have been all too quick to judge and oppose our fellow Americans for exercising their First Amendment right to address things they believe unjust.

Rather than besmirch their character, we must celebrate their act. For we cannot pioneer and invent if we are fearful of deviating from the norm, damaging our public perception or—most important—harming our own personal interests.

I thank Colin for all he has contributed to the game of football as an outstanding player and trusted teammate. I also applaud Colin for the courage he has demonstrated in exercising his guaranteed right of free speech. His willingness to take a position at personal cost is now part of our American story.

How lucky for us all and for our country to have among our citizens someone as remarkable as Colin Kaepernick

]]>755362Thu, 20 Apr 2017 17:06:54 +0000Mark Harris and North Carolina election fraud: New election now looks likelyhttps://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/774340-mark-harris-and-north-carolina-election-fraud-new-election-now-looks-likely/
In the midst of everything else going on, we’re not discussing this story and we probably should. Harris has denied knowing anything about any cheating going on, but now his son has contradicted him:

]]>774340Thu, 21 Feb 2019 14:24:08 +0000Israel and Palestine: Update: Netanyahu announces that if he is re-elected next week, Israel will annex parts of the West Bankhttps://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/661756-israel-and-palestine-update-netanyahu-announces-that-if-he-is-re-elected-next-week-israel-will-annex-parts-of-the-west-bank/
9 Presidents since 1967 have attempted to solve the Israel-Palestine dilemma. Nobody's done it. Clinton came the closest, but the Palestinians backed out. Before proposing my solution, let me summarize the problems:

Israel

1. Israel will refuse any solution that she believes will endanger her security or increase the chance of terrorist attacks.

2. Israel regards Jerusalem as the capital and a Jewish holy city and will refuse to give it up.

3. Israel will not agree to any Right of Return for Palestinians which would allow them to enter Israel and swamp the Jewish population.

4. Israel has settlers who continue to move into sections of the Occupied territories. Much like Ulster Protestants and Afrikaners, these settlers comprise the hard core of Israeli resistance to any agreement with the Palestinians. They believe they are God's chosen to occupy these lands. They and their supporters represent a minority among the Israeli population, but it is a powerful minority and they may fight rather than be forcibly relocated to support any peace plan.

Palestine

1. There are two Palestinian areas: Gaza and the West Bank. They are not contiguous. Israel separates them from each other. While the Palestinian Authority is in nominally in charge of both areas, in point of fact Gaza is ruled by Hamas, while the West Bank is governed by the inheritors of Yassir Arafat's PLO. The latter is thought to be much weaker.

2. Palestinians regard Jerusalem as a Muslim holy city and refuse to give it up. They demand it as the capital of any state of Palestine.

3. Palestinians demand as part of any peace agreement the Right of Return, which allows any Palestinian who fled or was forced out after 1948, or their descendants, to return to the state of Israel.

4. Palestinian extremists do not recognize the state of Israel and seek it's destruction. These extremists may or may not represent a majority of the entire Palestinian population. They certainly represent a majority of those who live in Gaza (ruled by Hamas) and those Palestinians who continue to live in Lebanon (dominated by Hezbollah.)

Now, here is my 4 point plan:

1. We're going to set up 2 Palestinian states- one in Gaza and one in the West Bank. The historical precedence for this would be the separate but friendly Orange Free State and Transvaal which were set up in northern South Africa in the late 19th century. (Or, as a much larger example, the formation of Pakistan and Bangladesh as separate Muslim states divided by India following the end of the British Raj.) These states will be self-governing, and, so long as they remain at peace, will receive trading benefits and foreign aid from the United States.

2. The state of Gaza will be whole because earlier in this decade Sharon forced the Jewish settlers in Gaza to withdraw. In order to make the West Bank whole, Israel will have to remove it's settlers from enough of the West Bank so as to allow for a contiguous state of the West Bank for Palestine. This was previously agreed to in 1999 by the Israelis and Clinton, though it falls short of Obama's vague idea that Israel would remove from 100% of the West Bank. The Jewish settlers on the West Bank will be compensated monetarily for their loss of land by the government of Israel with help from the United States.

3. Israel will grant the Right of Return to any Palestinians who fled or was forced out in 1948 and is still alive. No descendants. The descendants will receive a monetary compensation IF they can show evidence of forced removal. The compensation will be paid for by the State of Israel with help from the United States.

4. Jerusalem is the hardest part to resolve. I'm going to adopt the West Wing proposal: Tel Aviv becomes the capital of Israel, and the city of Jerusalem is named an international city (as it was before 1967), with it's holy sites protected and governed by an international force which will include the US military.

That's it. Obviously this would take a lot of work, and it would involve a greater involvement from us, which I'm sure some people around here will object to. But I think it's worth it, because any settlement would save us even more lives and money in the long run.

]]>767468Wed, 27 Jun 2018 18:11:56 +0000So Democracy is Fake in the UK?https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/773802-so-democracy-is-fake-in-the-uk/
If Brexit doesn't happen, and Parliament overturns Brexit, what does it say about the voting process there?

Does it say your vote doesn't matter if the government disagrees with it?

While I think they need to work harder to avoid a hard Brexit, overturning Brexit, which appears to have legs, sets a terrible precedent.

Does anyone disagree with this?

]]>773802Mon, 14 Jan 2019 18:54:44 +0000Gerrymandering. Update: Democrats won the popular vote for the Senate, House, and Presidency, but only control one of those.https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/758090-gerrymandering-update-democrats-won-the-popular-vote-for-the-senate-house-and-presidency-but-only-control-one-of-those/North Carolina given deadline after violating equal protection clause.

Figure we need a good gerrymandering thread. I think there are benefits to it but it's clearly being abused. I'm not sure how you would re-draw districts but it needs to be done in many areas.

]]>758090Sat, 05 Aug 2017 13:05:49 +0000Should we legalize Full-Auto Rifles, Bazookas and Grenades?https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/779840-should-we-legalize-full-auto-rifles-bazookas-and-grenades/
Do we love the Constitution enough to undo all the Arms bans?

Often it is said that additional bans are against "freedoms" as an argument. Its THE argument in most cases. Shouldn't we then have Bazookas and Grenades and Fully-Autos being carried around as well, without any worry about the dangers it presents? If its the damn freedom that is at the forefront, not the results.

Surely we want to enforce and keep all these "freedoms" at every other angle like for the Press, and freedom of Religion and to Assemble and to Petition. Is the right to Bear Arms different?

Or are subtle, and not-so-subtle, changes allowed to each and every one of these?

]]>779840Fri, 06 Sep 2019 07:28:21 +0000Political Novels- How many of these have you read?https://forums.footballguys.com/forum/topic/775253-political-novels-how-many-of-these-have-you-read/
In no particular order, these books are considered the best and most famous political novels ever written:

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

1984 by George Orwell

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

The Trial by Franz Kafka

Animal Farm by George Orwell

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

V for Vendetta by Alan Moore and David Lloyd

The Children of Men by PD James

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

Lord of the Flies by William Golding

Darkness at Noon by Arthur Koestler

War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

Primary Colors by Joe Klein

It Can't Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis

All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Native Son by Richard Wright

The Scarlett Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Advise and Consent by Allen Drury

The Manchurian Candidate by Richard Condon

Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison

Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

The Plot Against America by Philip Roth

Lincoln by Gore Vidal

The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad

Which of these have you read? What did you think of them? Which ones did you like the best? The worst? Share your thoughts in this thread.